A Friend of Quake Donates Royalties to D.M. Anderson and Family

Martin Bartloff, author of Torn From Normal, a compelling young adult novel, has pledged his next royalty check and all royalties between now and Christmas to help Dave Anderson, the author of Killer Cows who is in the ICU with an infection in his heart.

All of us at Quake thank Martin for his generous offer and hope many of our readers will take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the Anderson family. Give Torn From Normal as a gift or purchase a copy for yourself by clicking here.

A letter from a prison inmate

Dear Martin,

How are you and the rest of the family? Good I hope!
I have to say even though you just sent a book, it felt like when I was reading it, like talking to you—listening to a story from you. I truly thank you for thinking of me.

Torn from normal was great. It was better than great. It came alive and so sad. I’m grateful to be where I am today. I could have had it worse than I’ve had it. To hear Andy’s life tragedy makes me think life is too short to spend it away from family.

I have a son who loves me to death and it’s like why did I make the decision that I’ve made to be here, not be with him as he is growing up. It got me thinking, that I’ve got to be a part of that boy’s life, and not be dead to him, being in here. But anyways, great story, really. The best one I’ve read being locked up I will say.

So I just wanted to know, was that a true story or did you make it up? Because it felt like it could have happened, but I don’t remember you ever saying anything about that before. And even though it’s so sad, it made me feel like you brought home, away from home, to me. Thank you!!!!

Yours truly ……

P.S, is there gonna be another book? Thank you again!!

Glen Ellyn BookFest 2010

Mere days and I'll be on my way to Glen Ellyn, Chicago. The Glen Ellyn BookFest will be my first official, public appearance as the author of Torn From Normal. Preparations for my appearance in Glen Ellyn, has been ongoing for nearly one year now. Special thanks to Rosemary, from Bundles of Books & Gifts




I'm very excited to have Ophelia Julien (Echelon Press) to my side in Glen Ellyn. Present with a newly designed cover art of her proclaimed novel Saving Jake, Ophelia takes another running start, concurring the hearts of readers all ages.


We are all very excited to meet you in downtown Glen Ellyn June 19th. It will be a pleasure to speak with readers all ages and sign your personal copies of Torn From Normal.

Ryan Kelley and Torn From Normal

So if you're all scroll through my older posts, you will find Ophelia Julian guest blogging about me, Ryan Kelley, and of course Torn From Normal. My debut YA novel.






In the photo you see Ryan Kelley holding two copies of Torn From Normal.

Stay tuned as there is more, much more to come.

Mountain View, California??

No I'm not visiting California, at least not yet :-) What drives me crazy and I have to know, according to my sitemeter, every other day or so, somebody with the "Mountain View, California" location visits my blog. Whoever you are, you've been a loyal visitor and it kills me not knowing who you are. Comment or send me an email at bnzmn600@aol.com would you? The least I can do is send you a free copy of Torn From Normal if you don't already have one.

Okay, with that out of the way I can move on and apologize for not updating my blog regularly. Among skiing a lot, I've been super busy at my shop. While Torn From Normal has been selling itself, I could have, and need to do a lot more to keep spiking sales.

I like to thank all my friends and everybody else for purchasing and reading Torn From Normal.

The book trailer is still very much part of my plan for 2010. I'm trying to work out a deal with someone who would be very helpful for the trailer, but, Hollywood moves slow and I need to be patient, (chewing nails..Argh)






After two months of publication, I'm more eager today, to bring you Torn From Normal on screen, and I'm working on that as well. Very hard you should know.

The Man Who Said I Can

This is a special blog for me to write. I'm both excited and full of admiration for Martin. The release of Torn From Normal has been a long journey, one I am honored to have taken beside him for most of the trip.

I don't believe I've ever met someone with more determination or more belief in the power of perserverance. He faced obstacles I would have crumbled beneath. Throughout the creation of Torn From Normal, he has always maintained his friendship with me. And I mean that. Friendships can sometimes call for maintenance and he never neglected this. I believe this spirit is what first captured my interest in his original manuscript--the spirit of understanding the importance of what may seem to others as an insignificant life.

Torn From Normal isn't simply a YA book meant to entertain. It's a study of the way society treats each other, written from the perspective two young men in very different situations and how they deal with the grief life often brings. For me, Torn From Normal is a very special story and I think it will be for many others as well.

Congratulations, Martin. Job well done!

Warmly,
Jenny:)

My big day

Just checked my email and what do I see? Email notification from the printer company. My first proof copy of my very first novel Torn From Normal was sent out next-day-air, via UPS. Of course I freaked out and called my business partner (yes this late.) Since I already own a company, we deal with UPS on a daily bases. But, since I am the last person to arrive in the mornings--I don't really never see the next-day-air delivery. In fact, I have no clue what time they normally deliver the overnight shipments to my automotive business.

To my surprise, my business partner tells me on the phone tonight; UPS next-day-air gets there early every morning, before I get there, which is at 10am.





What is all my fuss about? I wrote a novel, my very first to be precise. It has been weeks, months and even years of hard work. Work I couldn't have done on my own without the help of some great people, special people without whom my project of writing a novel would never have seen the end of the first day.

I fell on my face a lot learning the different stages of writing and publishing a novel. I've been stubborn, made mistakes, didn't listen, but I got back up, refusing and rejecting defeat. In a few hours my wait will finally be over. Another mission in my life will be accomplished. When a small package will be handed to me by a UPS driver. Seemingly no different than any other delivery we got by UPS next-day-air. But this package will make a difference on this morning. Inside will be the very first copy of my novel Torn From Normal. For the first time I will hold something so important, that my knees will probably get soft like jelly.






To be successful in life, you have to believe in yourself. You have to believe what you're doing is right, and most importantly, you have to believe in your product. Torn From Normal is not--will not be just another book, or another story. To me it has become a lifestyle, a part of me and now the time has come to share my work with the world. When I talk about Torn From Normal, it will be no different than selling a Mercedes Benz. I stand behind my product and I believe in what I have to offer. Would I not, I wouldn't have been successful in life.